The Masked Ball
by freezingpizza14
Summary: Annabeth and Percy are finally together, and the Prank war between the guys and the girls is as strong as ever. But someone is out to ruin Percy and take Annabeth from Percy. Filled with plenty of humor, romance, and drama. *Sequel to The Olympian Ball.*
1. Chapter 1: Percy

***Hope this is good. Review and tell me what you think. If I get enough good reviews I'll continue it, but if not i'm not even going to bother.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing of Rick Riordan's.* **

*Chapter 1: Percy*

Grover, Travis, Connor, Chris, Nico and I were in the bathroom filling up water balloons for a prank on the girls.

"Are you sure this will work?" Connor asked.

"Of course," Travis said. "This plan can't possibly fail." Connor scoffed at his brother.

I could think of a million reasons how it could, but I didn't say them out loud. So I filled the balloons in silence as Travis and Connor argued.

"This year, Nico gets to be part of the fun," Grover said, smirking at Nico.

Since Nico's girlfriend Rose - long story - had joined the enemies (aka the girls) that means Nico gets to join us. Since the girls won the Prank war last year - don't ask, but I'm sure the girls will brag about it later, so just stick around - we have been planning our victory for this year. Unfortunately, so have they.

The girls, Clarisse, Rose, Katie, Juniper and my girlfriend Annabeth, were strange these last few days, being really sweet. We knew they were up to something, so we were going to get them before they got us.

And in case you're wondering, no, we are not filling up the balloons with just water.

Once the balloons were filled, we walked out of the boys bathroom, trying to look as casual as possible.

"Travis, you're supposed to look casual!" Grover said. I heard Connor, Nico and Chris burst into laughter behind me, and I looked back. Travis had two water balloons in the front of his shirt, making him look . . . well, like a girl.

Chiron, with his bow-and-arrow in his hand, passed. I saw him shoot a double glance at Travis.

"Chiron," I asked, "where are the girls? Annabeth, Clarisse, Juniper, and Rose?"

"They just passed," Chiron said, still staring at Travis. "Said they were doing something important."

Travis took out the water balloons and hid them behind his back. "Were any of them, um, holding something?"

"No," Chiron said, "Why?"

"Just wondering," Connor muttered. "Thanks." We hurried off, almost ran to my cabin.

"You don't think the girls are getting ready to do a prank of their own, do you?" Grover panted.

"I don't know," I said. "But I wouldn't put it past Annabeth to come up with something smart."

"So we're just going to hide out in your cabin, and then what?" Nico asked. "Go out and find them?"

"Annabeth knows we'll go looking for them. So we're going to wait until their guards are down."

"You do realize that we're going completely off chance here?" Chris said.

"Yeah, I know."

Almost there. My cabin was a few yards away, and no sign of any of the girls. I didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

"This is stupid," Connor said. "I am not afraid of a bunch of girls. I'm not going to hide out-"

"Don't you get it?" Travis said. "Annabeth is Athena's daughter. She's smart. She knows what we'll do. So we have to do the unexpected."

"But what if she expects we'll try to do the unexpected and expects us to hide like wimps?" Chris asked.

I thought about it. "Okay, one: thanks for the major confusing headache. Two: knowing Annabeth she'll probably expect it, yeah, but she won't know for sure unless one of us was really stupid and obvious. And three: is it just me, or does something not feel right?"

"Yeah, I know what you mean," Travis said. "Here we are, out in the open, and no sign of any of the girls? It's making my hair stand on edge."

Nico shuddered. "The sooner we get to Percy's cabin the better."

I rolled my eyes. "Come on, guys. You're not seriously _afraid,_ are you?"

"You should talk!" Grover scoffed. "I can feel your emotions. And should I remind you of what happened last year? With your boxers and the spray paint-"

"Okay!" I said quickly, cutting him off. My face burned. "No need to bring it up! It was bad enough when Annabeth took that picture. Anyway, I mean, we have the upper hand. We have Nico now, right? The more people the better."

Travis rolled his eyes. "Geez, Percy. You really are dense. They have someone new now too, remember? You know, Nico's girlfriend Rose? Yeah, her. She may not be Athena's daughter but she is pretty dang smart."

I was about to answer, but we'd reached my cabin. I pulled the door open and we huddled inside.

"Phew," Connor said, sighing with relief. "We made it, thank Hermes. We're safe."

"Not quite," a voice said, and we froze.

Slowly, we turned around. Nobody was there.

I swallowed. "Annabeth?"

"No, it's Nobody," the voice said.

"That's a relief," Connor said. "I thought somebody was really there."

Travis groaned and face palmed. "Dude . . ."

The air shimmered. Then Annabeth appeared, her Yankees hat in her hand.

"Surprise," she said. Suddenly the cabin door closed. The lights came on, and standing behind us holding water balloons of their own was . . . .

"Oh nooooo!" Grover clawed at the door, but it wouldn't open.

"Grover, _open it!" _Travis screamed, but it was too late. Katie pelted him with water balloons. Then we were all dripping wet with . . . something that wasn't water. I knew it wasn't water because I couldn't dry myself, and the smell hit me like a ton of bricks.

"Eww! Annabeth, what is this?" I asked, wrinkling my nose. I couldn't cover my nose with my shirt because my shirt was soaked with the stuff.

"This," Annabeth said smugly, "is payback for making us walk around camp in our underwear and bras with eyeliner drawn all over us."

"Yeah? Well, we've got some payback of our own!" Travis shouted, throwing his balloons at Katie, who ducked.

"This is for spray painting my boxers pink!" I said, tossing my balloons at Annabeth.

"I'd watch it, Jackson!" she said, throwing a blue balloon at me and hitting my chest. The balloon exploded in my face. "I've still got the picture!"

I paused. "I thought you said you deleted it!"

"Nope." Annabeth smirked, and I had to admit, it made my heart thump. Even pelting me with non-water filled balloons she looked beautiful.

Oh gods, did I really think that? My face felt hot.

"We ran out of water balloons!" Travis said. "Okay, okay! You win!"

The girls cheered.

"Girls: one. Boys: zero," Rose said, grinning lovingly at Nico.

"Boys are so stupid," Clarisse snorted.

"And too easy," Katie added.

"Oh, and by the way," Annabeth said as they turned to leave, "That stink won't go away unless you bathe in tomato juice."

"Why tomato juice?" Grover asked, wild eyed. "I thought that was only for when skunks . . . oh, man!"

"Aww, dude." Travis shed his shirt and threw it as far from him as he could. "They pelted us with skunk funk!"

"That's low," I told Annabeth.

She gave me a smile. "All's fair in love and war." And the girls left, pinching their noses to block our stink. It wasn't until after they were gone that I realized two things: the door was locked after we'd came in and that none of us hit a single girl with our water balloons.

"They play dirty," Chris said, peeling his soaked shirt off his skin. "But I've got a plan. An idea that can't fail. Well, actually, it could. It could go horribly wrong."

"Oh yeah?" I said. "I hope it's better than Travis's ideas."

"Gee, thanks, Percy," Travis said, rolling his eyes.

"You're welcome," I reply.

"Anyway," Chris continued, "after we bathe in tomato juice and get this funk off of us, we'll try my plan. Now, here's what we're gonna do . . ."

***Sorry this took so long. Been busy. Review! If I get enough reviews I'll continue this, but I've been having doubts. If I get . . . eh, at least 10 reviews, I'll have chapter 2 up by monday. That's a promise.***


	2. Chapter 2: Annabeth

***Chapter 2. Hope you like. The Ball will be explained in this chapter.**

**Here's chapter 2, as promised.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing of Rick Riordan's. The only thing I own is Brad, Rose, and the other three guys that will ask Annabeth to the ball that will be appearing in the story later.* **

*Chapter 2: Annabeth*

"Did you see their faces when Annabeth told them about the skunk-filled balloons? Priceless!" Katie laughed.

Katie, Juniper, Clarisse, Rose and I were sitting in my cabin.

"I know." I smirked. "And they didn't land a single blow on us with their balloons."

"Like I said, they're idiots." Clarisse grumbled.

"But they're our idiots," Rose giggled.

I sat up in my bed. The girls were sitting on the edges around me. "So, girls, what are we going to do for the Ball this year?"

"Ooo, I heard it's going to be a masked ball," Juniper said excitedly. "We get to wear old style dresses with a bodice and mask and everything."

"I'm not too siked about the bodice, but the dress part I'm excited for," Rose said. "I'm going to doll up and curl my hair."

"I'm thinking about just wearing jeans," Clarisse said. "I hate dresses."

"Jeans to a ball?" Katie scoffed.

Clarisse shrugged. "More comfortable for me anyway. What about you, princess?"

"I already have a dress picked out," I said, ignoring Clarisse's 'princess' jibe. "I don't know if I'm going to wear makeup though."

"You don't need it," Juniper said kindly. "And besides, you're going to be wearing a mask."

"Yeah, true," I said.

"Um, if we're all going to be wearing masks then how are we going to know who's who?" Rose asked.

"We make our dates wear something so we will recognize them," Clarisse said. "Obviously."

"Mmhm," I said. "And I've already got something for Percy." I took the polka-dotted bow tie out of my dresser drawer.

Everyone burst out laughing.

"He's not going to wear that!" Juniper giggled.

I smirked, feeling somewhat devious. "Oh, he will. Or he'll have to answer to me."

Suddenly the conch horn sounded, signaling that it was time for dinner.

"I'll see you guys later," I said, and Clarisse, Katie, Rose, and Juniper left. I was about to follow them to the mess hall when a figure was suddenly blocking my path.

I took a small step back. "Oh, hey, Brad," I said.

Brad was tall, with strong shoulders, a blinding white smile, and blue eyes. "Hey," he said, taking a small step torward me. "I want to ask you something."

I took another step back. "Oh, yeah?"

"So, um, I'm still pretty much a new camper here and all, and I don't really know anyone else, so I was wondering . . . if you wanted to go to the ball with me?"

"Oh," I said, suddenly feeling really awkward. "Well, um, Brad, the thing is I kind of already have a boyfriend, so . . ."

"Oh," he said, looking crestfallen. "Oh alright. Well, I'll see you around then."

"Yeah," I said. "See you."

I started when another figure siddled up to me a few seconds later, but it was just Percy.

"Hey," he said, grinning.

"Hey." I smiled. I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. Percy's arm went around my shoulders, and I wrapped my arm around his waist. I reached up on my tiptoes - he's taller than me - and kissed him, his mouth soft and sweet against mine.

"Okay, so there's this thing I wanted to show you," he said when we finally pulled apart.

"Oh yeah?" I said, raising an eyebrow. "This isn't a prank, is it?"

He rolled his eyes. "So you think everything I do is going to be a prank?"

"I don't know," I said slyly. "Is it?"

He scoffed, pretending to be offended. "No! So do you want to see it or not?"

"I guess," I sighed. "But I'm hungry, so show me after dinner, okay?"

"Sure," he said. "But eat fast, okay? Or you'll miss it."

"Alright," I said. "You're not eating?"

"Travis has junk food," he said. He kissed me quickly. "See you later!"

"See you," I said. Once he was gone I went to the mess hall and sat with my sibilings. Once I scraped a part of my meal into the fire for Athena I went back to my table and ate quickly, not even tasting the food. Looking around, I saw Katie, Clarisse, and Rose eating quickly too, so I figured that this surprise was for all of us from the boys. Which meant watch out for a trap.

Percy, Travis, Connor, Chris, Grover, and Nico were waiting for us outside the mess hall. Juniper was waiting beside Grover.

"This'd better not be a trap, Seaweed Brain," I warned.

"Nope," he said. "This is for all of us. Chris thought of it."

"Now close your eyes," Connor said. "And we'll take you to it."

"Alright, but if this is a prank you're dead meat, punks," Clarisse said.

The boys led us forward. I felt Percy's hand on my back, too much aware of his side brushing against mine.

Suddenly Travis laughed. "Hey, hey guys, you know what I just realized?"

"What?" Percy, Nico, and Chris asked.

"Out of our group, Connor's the only one without a date," Travis said, laughing again.

I heard a smacking sound, and Travis grunting, "Oof!"

"Shut up, man," I heard Connor say. "I just haven't asked anyone yet."

"What happened to Lacy from the Aphrodite cabin?" Nico asked. "You were getting real cozy with her last year."

"She wasn't cool enough," Connor said.

"Meaning she dumped his sorry butt," Chris chuckled.

Connor scoffed. "Shut up."

It grew silent for a few moments. Then suddenly we stopped.

"Okay, girls, we need you in place. This is going to be great," Travis said. "Back up in a circle around the flagpole. Yes, like that. Good, now wait while we-tie them up, boys!"

**(A/N: There isn't a real flagpole but in this story this is.)**

Suddenly I felt something wrap around my waist, and my eyes flew open. Percy was standing in front of me, helping the boys wrap a thick rope around me and the girls, tying us to the flagpole.

"Percy!" I grit my teeth. "You are _so _dead!"

"You're all dead when we get out of here!" Clarisse growled.

Once we were tightly restrained the boys stepped back.

Connor high fived Chris. "Dude, this is the best prank ever. Congrats, man."

Clarisse glared hard at Chris, and Chris swallowed.

"Hey girls, look up," Nico said, and we did. Hanging up the pole, just below the flag, was a flowing . . . lacy green bra.

"Oh my gods!" Katie screamed. "That's mine!"

The boys all high fived each other, laughing so hard they doubled over.

Suddenly, I had an idea. But if I could just reach it . . .

Chris swallowed. "Um, guys?"

"Y-yeah?" Percy choked.

"Remember when I said this plan could go horribly wrong?"

"Yeah, but it didn't," Nico said. "Good plan, dude. And just wait until the others come back from dinner and see this! We'll be pranking legends!"

"Well, I meant to tell you guys that this plan could go horribly wrong if we forgot to take their weapons after we tied them up, but . . . I didn't think we'd actually forget to do it."

Too little, too late, boys.

The boys suddenly stopped laughing. They turned toward us just as the cut ropes fell from our waists, my knife in my hand.

They started backing up, fear on their faces. Percy swallowed. "Holy Zeus."

"Chris?" Nico said.

"Yeah?" Chris asked fearfully.

"Your ideas suck as bad as Travis's."

"Start running," Clarisse said, pulling out her electric spear, and they did.

"AHHHHHH! Chiron heeeeeeelp!" Grover screamed. "Raging girls are after us!"

Chiron barely looked up from his pinochle game. "Sorry, boys. A little busy with an after-dinner game."

"So, what should we do with them after we catch them, girls?" I panted.

"How about we make _them _run around in their underwear with eyeliner drawn all over them," Katie said. "And do a little something extra for Travis for putting my bra on the flag pole."

"We could make him wear pink boxers with unicorns and rainbows all over them," Juniper suggested.

I smirked. "Juniper, I love that idea. Lets get 'em, girls."

It wasn't until later that I realized we'd left Katie's bra on the flag pole. Oops.

***Hope you liked. Chapter 3 coming soon. **

**Keep reading for a sneak preview at what's going to happen at the ball! Only a rough draft though, will probably be a little different when the real chapter comes.**

(Percy)

I weaved my way around the dancing demigods, occasionally getting slapped with the hem of a girls' dress. I found four couples surrounding the food table. I quickly made my way over to them.

"Hey, guys," I said. "Have you seen Annabeth?"

They turned to me. I recognized Grover by his horns poking out of his curly brown hair. "Um, hi. Who are you?"

I ripped my mask off. "What are you talking about, Grover? It's me, Percy."

Nico took his black mask off. "Percy? You-you're not wearing the polka dotted bow tie?"

"No way," I laughed. "There's no way Annabeth could get me to wear that thing. Where is she, anyway? I've been looking for her all night."

Grover looked at the others. They all took their masks off, confusion on their faces.

"If Percy's over here with us," Grover asked, "then who's Annabeth with on the dance floor?"

"My guess is someone who Annabeth thinks is Percy," Travis said. "An imposter."

"Woa, woa, hold on a second," I said. "I'm so confused here. What is going on?"

"Someone wore the polka-dotted bow tie and is pretending to be you," Katie said, wide-eyed. "Oh my gods, it's almost midnight! You have to find her, Percy! The midnight ball kiss!"

My heart dropped to the floor.

I had to find Annabeth. Now.


	3. Chapter 3: Annabeth

***Thanks a bunch for all the reviews and reading this story, it means alot. I was having doubts about this until I saw all the comments. X)**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except Rose, Brad, Steven and Toby, the three guys that want Annabeth for themselves.***

*Chapter 3: Annabeth*

I had to admit, seeing Travis in pink unicorn rainbow boxers was probably the highlight of my day. Until Percy came out in blue boxers with eyeliner all over his body.

I blushed, and unfortunately, Percy saw it.

He smirked. "Why are you blushing, Wise Girl?"

I raised my chin. "I'm not. Now get walking, boys. And don't scream out that we're your dates to embarass us, because it won't work for you like it did with us."

Then Chris came out. And the girls and I fell to the ground laughing, holding our stomachs and sides.

He was wearing a speedo, eyeliner drawn in shapeless patterns on his body. We'd put Chris in the speedo since he was the one to come up with the idea to put Katie's bra on the flag pole, which we finally retrieved and is now safely tucked away in Katie's trunk.

"Gods, Chris. That thing looks like it's too small!" Clarisse said.

Chris blushed. The boys had to walk around the entire camp. This was going to be entertaining and interesting.

"We walk with pride boys," Percy sighed. "We're not going to give the girls the satisfaction of our humiliation."

"Too late for that," I muttered. Percy made a face at me. The girls and I stayed behind, but made sure that everyone got their eyefull of the boys. People stopped and stared. Some snickered. A group of girls pointed and giggled.

I was watching the boys, my mood light and happy and victorious, when suddenly a figure blocked my view.

"Oh . . . Steven," I said. "Hey."

"Hey." Steven smiled. He was tall too, almost as tall as Brandon. Except Brandon was a child of Hermes, and Steven was a child of Apollo. Rose was Steven's half sister. He had dark brown hair, brown eyes, and tan skin, just like her.

"Um, what's up?" I asked.

"Nothing." He looked behind him. "Nice prank on the boys, by the way."

I smiled. "Thank you."

Steven rubbed the back of his neck, as if he were nervous. Juniper nudged me and giggled.

"So," he started, "Um, I was just wondering . . . you know, if you don't already have someone . . . if you maybe wanted to go to the ball with me?"

I blinked. "Oh. Well, I, uh, already have someone, so . . ."

Steven's face fell. "Right. Of course. I can understand that."

What is it with these guys, I thought. Everyone at camp knows I'm dating Percy.

Then, as if he'd read my mind, he said, "I'm sorry about what happened. With Percy."

The other girls stared at him, just as confused as I was.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, frowning.

"Your breakup," he said slowly, as if he was talking to a little kid. "There's a rumor going around camp that you two have broken up. Haven't you noticed all the girls that have been around him lately? They want him for themselves."

I looked over at the boys. Sure enough, a girl from the Hermes cabin was standing in front of Percy, her hand on his arm.

I looked back at Steven, my good mood falling. "I don't know who started that rumor," I said through gritted teeth. "But it's not true. Percy and I are still together."

Steven blinked. "Oh. Okay."

"Yeah." I nervously played with my golden curls. Now I just wanted to grab Percy and keep him to myself, to keep the other girls as far from him as possible. "So, um, see you around?"

"Yeah." Suddenly his face was unreadable. "See you later."

After he was gone I turned to the girls. "Who the Hades started a rumor that Percy and I broke up?"

"I don't know," Rose said. "But oh my gods, I can't believe my brother asked you to the ball!"

"_I _can't believe you're a child of Apollo and you're dating Nico," Clarisse muttered.

"I know," Katie said. "But it's sweet. It's like . . . light and darkness coming together."

"I can't believe the boys haven't made a run for it," Juniper said.

I whirled around. Yep. The boys certainly did make a break for it.

"Dang it!" Katie stomped her foot in frusteration. "Where did they go?"

"It doesn't matter," I said. "We have to find them. We still need to do the fittings, remember?"

I grinned at the girls, and they grinned back. The boys could run, but they couldn't hide.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

'Hold still!" Katie grit her teeth and poked the pin straight into Travis's skin.

"Ouch!" he yelped.

"Hold still, then!" Katie poked in another pin.

Travis, Connor, Chris, and Grover were already here, getting their fittings. They kept trying to escape, but Clarisse came in handy as a pretty good bodyguard.

We were doing it in the Poseidon cabin, since their was more room and more privacy. Plus, when Percy and Nico would finally reappear - they were the only two that got away - Rose and I would give them their fittings.

And who was to suddenly walk through the door but Percy and Nico. They stopped, glancing around the room.

"What's going on?" Percy asked.

I grabbed his arm. "Fittings for the ball, of course. You don't seriously think you'd be able to get out of it, do you?"

Percy glanced behind him, at the door, which Clarisse slowly closed with her boot.

Percy looked at Nico and said weakly, "Well, at least you get to be part of this now."

Nico swallowed. "I think I'd rather be outside laughing at you."

I teasingly held up the polka dotted bow tie to Percy. "How tight do you want it?"

He swallowed. "Tight enough to strangle me?"

I grinned.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ten attempted escapes and a poke-in-the-side-with-a-pin later, we finally let the boys go. Once we gathered everything, the girls stood by the door, waiting for me.

"Go on," I said. "I'll catch up later."

"Okay, but don't be late," Katie said. "We still have to do our fittings."

After they left I turned to Percy, who was struggling to untie the bow tie.

"Here, Seaweed Brain," I laughed. "I'll get it."

I untied it, and he clawed it off.

"I hate bow ties," he said, scowling at the bow tie in his hands as though it would bite him.

"Too bad," I said, taking it from him. "It's so I'll be able to know who you are. And that reminds me, what mask are you wearing?"

"You'll see." He grinned.

"If it's a halloween mask, Percy, I swear I-"

"It's a regular mask!" he said, holding up his hands. "Honest."

I raised my hands and intwined my fingers with his. "Good. And, um, there's something I need to tell you . . ."

"What is it?" he asked.

I stared at our intwined hands. "Percy, have you heard of a rumor that's been going around camp? About us being broken up, I mean?"

Percy blinked. He stared at me. "No. Why? Do you know who started it?"

I shook my head. "No. But two guys have already asked me to the ball because they think I'm single."

Percy was silent for a heartbeat. "What two guys?" he blurted.

I smiled. "Brandon, Travis and Connor's brother. And Steven, Rose's brother."

"Oh." His face clouded over.

I squeezed his hands. "Don't worry," I murmured. "I told both of them no. And I'll tell anyone who asks me no." I leaned forward and kissed him. We lay on our sides on his bed, our lips never breaking apart, my body crushed against his.

"And don't think you can kiss your way out of wearing that bow tie," I murmured against his lips, smiling.

***Hope you liked. Sorry it took so long. I'll try to have chapter 4 up asap. ****Review****!***


	4. Chapter 4: Percy

***Chapter 4 is here, sorry it's boring. And sorry, no more sneak peaks of parts from the upcoming ball. You'll just have to be patient with me. X)**

**Disclaimer: I think we all know I am not Rick, so obviously I don't own PJ&O. I just own Brandon, Toby, and Steven. And Rose.* **

*Chapter 4: Percy*

The day after the boys and I got our fittings, which was a torture-filled hour, we were sitting in the Big House with Chiron.

"So, um, I'm almost afraid to ask, but why the underwear fashion show yesterday?" Chiron asked.

All of our faces turned red. "We-it was a prank," Chris mumbled. "It backfired on us."

"Uh huh." Chiron made a face. "The things teenagers come up with," he sighed to himself.

"You're not doing the dance lessons again, are you?" I asked.

"Well, of course," Chiron said. "I don't know why you're complaining, Percy, you and Annabeth did really well at the lessons last year."

All the other boys laughed while I looked down, my face hot.

"Well, Percy's never been really light on his feet," Travis laughed.

"More like clumsy," Grover said.

"Okay, thank you!" I said quickly.

The conch shell sounded for dinner, and Chiron stood. "Time for dinner, boys," he said. "And the next time you or the girls do any pranks on each other, please refrain from any undergarmet shows, alright?" He eyed us.

"Yes sir," we mumbled. We followed him out and to the mess hall, where the girls were waiting.

"Hey," I said to Annabeth when we reached them.

"Hey," she said, kissing me. "Where were you guys?"

"In the Big House with Chiron," I said as we walked in. "He said we have to cool it with the extreme under clothed pranks."

We went to our seperate tables. I sat down at my table. After I scraped a part of my meal into the fire and murmured a prayer to Poseidon, I sat back at my table and ate quickly, hoping to leave before Annabeth could drag me to the dance lessons.

When dinner was over, Chiron clapped his hands. "Alright, campers! As you know, the ball will be in two days, so of course the dance lessons are still open to anyone who needs them."

"And for any poor sucker who doesn't know how to dance," I heard Travis say.

Connor looked at his brother. "Travis, _you _don't know how to dance."

Everyone laughed. "Quiet," Chiron called, stomping his hoove. "So, if you're staying, stay. The rest of you, head off to your cabins. You have two hours before it's lights out."

There was murmuring of the campers as people headed off. Annabeth hasn't come yet, so I figured I could slip away . . .

But where was she? I didn't see her in the crowd. She'd probably left for her cabin.

I was about to leave when I saw her standing by the head table, talking to someone, a guy with blond hair and dark green eyes. I recognized him as Toby, son of . . . Aphrodite? Ares? I didn't know. And I didn't care. Though I did care about what him and Annabeth were talking about.

I was about to turn away when Annabeth caught my eye. She said something to Toby, then started walking torwards me. Toby stared after her as she walked away. His eyes suddenly caught mine. We stared at each other for a few moments, something in both of our faces. There was a pregnant pause, then he turned away.

"Hey," I said when Annabeth reached me.

"Hi," she said back, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

"So, um . . ." I started.

She sighed, her shoulders slumping. "I know what you're going to say, so I'll just say it. Toby asked me to the ball."

I rocked back on my heels, feeling like my brain was turning to goo. "Oh yeah?"

She raised her eyes to meet mine. I looked away, but she took my face and turned my head back. "I said no, Seaweed Brain."

"I know, but . . . this rumor's getting on my nerves," I said. I didn't want to say anything, but I think she'd be madder that I didn't tell her. "I mean, because everyone thinks we're broken up, girls keep asking me to the ball."

"I know," she said. "I saw a Hermes girl ask you."

"What are we going to do?" I asked.

She smiled. "We'll just have to make it clear that we're together, and we're staying together."

I was about to ask something else, but before I could she grabbed my hand and led me into the crowd of demigods waiting for their dance lesson.

"Aw, come on," I complained. "I already know how to dance."

"Would you just trust me?" she murmured, rolling her eyes.

"All right campers, find a partner," Chiron said. "I'll be going around offering assistance to anyone that needs it." He put the music on. All around us people twirled. There was a couple not too far away that kept stepping on each others toes.

The only other couples that had stayed were Grover and Juniper, Rose and Nico, and Katie and Travis, though how she managed to keep him here for the dance lessons was beyond me. Clarisse, Chris, and Connor were gone.

"Come on," Annabeth said. She took my hand and put her other on my chest. I put my other hand on her waist and moved closer, our bodies almost pressed together.

We weren't the best dancers in the room, but we most certainly weren't the worst. At least I managed not to step on Annabeth's toes. I spun her around and around, until she got dizzy. Like last time, everyone stopped to stare. I saw whispering, no doubt wondering whether Annabeth and I were still a couple.

"Everyone's staring at us," I muttered in Annabeth's ear.

"I know," she said. "That's what I was hoping for."

"Why?" I asked. Why would she want people staring at us?

She wrapped her arm around my neck and kissed me.

Oh. That's why.

There was an excited gasp from the crowd. A couple of girls mouths fell open in dismay.

Annabeth turned to the crowd. "For whoever thought that rumor about me and Percy being broken up was true, it wasn't."

"It's not?" a girl asked, sounding dissapointed.

"You shouldn't believe everything you hear," Annabeth said. I wrapped my arms around her waist.

"Well, I think we've had enough practice. Everyone, off to bed now," Chiron said. People started filling out. A few still stared at us.

In the moving crowd I spotted Brandon, Steven, and Toby. I quickly turned Annabeth away before she saw them. I felt all three pairs of their eyes on us as we left.

Hand in hand, I walked Annabeth to the Athena cabin. We stopped at the door, and she turned to me and wrapped her arms around my neck.

"Good night," she said.

"Good night," I said.

She leaned in and kissed me. We stayed like that until a familiar voice said, "Gods, you two. I just get here and the first thing I see is you two making kissy face."

Annabeth and I both turned to see Thalia grinning at us, a bag slung over her shoulder.

"Thalia!" Annabeth cried, hugging her.

"I'm here," she said after Annabeth pulled away. I hugged her. "I wanted to come early this time for the ball. Plus I don't want to miss the party tomorrow."

"Oh yeah, the party's going to be great," Annabeth said, her arms around my waist.

Every year before the ball there's a big party. It's one of the things that everyone looks forward too, sometimes more than the ball itself.

"And I heard there's going to be a special surprise too," Thalia said. "Grover told me, but he made me swear not to say anything. Anyway, I'd better get back to the other Hunters. Later!"

"So, I'll see you tomorrow?" Annabeth asked after Thalia was gone.

"Yeah." I smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow."

She tilted her face up, and I leaned down and kissed her.

"And maybe tomorrow we'll get to pet the sharks again," I said when we finally pulled away.

Her lips curved up into a smile. "Maybe. Good night."

"Good night." I kissed her one more time, then turned and went back to my cabin, actually looking forward to the party and the ball, because being with Annabeth will make it ten times better.

***Sorry this was kind of boring. But the next chapter will be the party, and plus there'll be alot of drama that unfolds between then and the ball. It's gonna be crazy. lol**

**So, has anyone noticed something? Something about one of the three guys that I purposely didn't mention? Think about it and the imposter at the ball. Think you can figure it out?***


	5. Chapter 5: Annabeth

***Sorry I haven't been updating much. ****And guess who'll be joining this year? That's right, Jason, Piper, and Leo! Sorry, this is a Greek ball. No Romans except Jason. Buuut . . . a Roman ball is a really good idea!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything of Rick's except Rose, Toby, Steven, and Brandon.* **

*Chapter 5: Annabeth*

When I woke up this morning, I couldn't help but smile. Now everyone knew that stupid rumor wasn't true. Guys would leave me alone, girls had better leave Percy alone, and the traditional party before the ball was tonight.

When I dressed and stuffed my invisibility cap in my back pocket, I left the Athena cabin to find a long-stemmed rose on the steps. Picking it up, I noticed a piece of paper stuck on one of the thorns. Taking it off, I opened it.

_A pretty rose for a pretty girl. _

I blushed, a smile creeping to my face. Only Percy would do something this cheesy. Putting the rose on my bed, I left my cabin again to find him.

I found him sitting on the beach, the waves up to his waist, but he wasn't getting wet. I snuck up behind him and gently wadded into the ocean, trying not to let him hear me.

Putting on my invisibility cap, I leaned down and gently blew in his ear. His hand went up and he rubbed his ear, and I bit the inside of my cheek to hold in my laughter. Grinning, I did it again. He covered his ear with his palm and spun around, confusion on his face.

I almost burst out laughing, but instead I wrapped my arms around his neck from behind and whispered in his non-covered ear, "I figured you would know it would be me by now and not the breeze, Seaweed Brain." I left a small trail of kisses, from his cheek to his neck. I saw his face go red.

His hand dropped from his ear and reached up, searching. When he found my hat he pulled it off, smirking. "Very clever, Wise Girl."

"I know," I laughed. He turned his head, and his mouth met mine.

"Hey!" a voice called. We both jumped and pulled apart.

"If you two aren't helping set up for the party, then you're going to have to leave," a satyr called.

I turned to Percy. "Want to help set up for the party?"

He pretended to think about it. "Um . . . no."

I elbowed him and got to my feet. Percy stood up beside me, completely dry.

After we were back on land I raised an eyebrow. Percy smirked and touched my elbow, and pretty soon I was completely dry too.

"So, what do you want to do?" Percy asked. "The party doesn't start until seven."

"I don't know," I said. I wrapped my arms around his waist. "Thank you, by the way." I'd left the rose on my bed so I could see it every time I walked into my cabin.

"For what?" he asked, but I just kissed him. It was also like him to pretend he had no idea what I was talking about.

"Want to go back to my cabin?" he asked. "With the ball tomorrow and us always trying to prank each other it seems like we haven't just hung out lately."

"The last time you kidnapped me and took me to your cabin, where you and the boys made me and the girls walk around camp half naked and covered in eye liner," I pointed out.

His smile melted me. "Exactly."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Nobody's 3rd person POV)

His plan was set. Looking around to make sure no one was watching, he couldn't help but notice Jackson and Annabeth quietly slip into the Poseidon cabin hand in hand.

Anger boiled inside him, but he pushed it down. Soon, he thought. Soon. Soon Annabeth would be his.

He slipped into the Athena cabin when no one was watching. He stopped at the foot of Annabeth's bed and knelt. He opened her trunk, taking care not to disturb anything. Then he saw it. The polka-dotted bow tie.

He gingerly picked it up and put it in his pocket. Closing the trunk, he noticed the rose he'd sent her laying on her pillow.

She thinks Jackson gave it to her, he thought angrily. He huffed out a breath and stood. The sooner he got Jackson out of the picture the better. When midnight comes, he'll kiss her, and she'll realize they were meant to be together and she'll dump Percy. If anyone deserved Annabeth, deserved to be with her, it was him. Not Jackson. Not anyone else.

The thought lightened his mood a considerable amount, and he walked with almost careless ease out of the Athena cabin, a new spring in his step, the bow tie safely in his pocket, his plan already setting into motion.

Now all he had to do was get a mask.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

"Stop!" I laughed, twisting my waist to escape, but Percy's fingers kept tickling me.

"Say it," he said.

"N-never!" I laughed.

"Say I'm supreme lord of the water, or else," he warned, grinning.

"Oh, you're supreme lord alright. Supreme lord of the seaweed."

I twisted and landed on my stomach on the other side of his bed, burying my face in his pillow. I felt his fingers gently push my hair back.

"Annabeth?" he said.

"Hmm?"

He sighed. "Do I really have to wear that stupid bow tie?"

"Yep." I grinned to myself. "You have to, and that's final, so quit trying to worm your way out of it, mister. Do you have anything to declare?"

"Actually, yes," he said. "I declare bow ties stupid."

"Ha-ha."

He leaned over me. I twisted my neck and faced him, staring into those sea green eyes. "I love you," I whispered.

He blinked. "I love you too," he said. Slowly he kissed me, soft at first but growing deeper. My arms wound around his neck. His hands were on my waist. Our bodies were crushed together, no space left between us.

And then I saw it. The creepy, crawling hairy little monster slowly creeping down the wall closest to the bed, ready to jump on me without a moment's notice.

I screamed and jumped up, moving as far away from the spider as I could, my heart pounding.

Percy jumped up too. "What's wrong?" he asked. I pointed a shaky finger at the spider.

"Why is this the second year in a row that a spider ruined a perfect moment for me?" he muttered, so low I barely heard him. If I wasn't so overcome with fear I would have laughed. And blushed. But, spiders . . . I shuddered.

"Please, get rid of it," I said. He peered at the spider on the wall.

"I'm not touching this one. It looks poisonous," he said.

"Then kill it! But please get it away from me," I moaned, closing my eyes. I heard the sound of the cabin door opening, then closing. It felt like I waited forever. Then I felt Percy's hands on my face, his lips along my jawline.

"It's gone," he muttered.

"Sorry," I murmured. "Spiders . . . ."

"I know, I know." He tried to kiss me, but I teasingly turned my head, and he kissed the corner of my mouth instead.

"Not cool." he frowned.

"This coming from the supreme lord of seaweed," I said. "We have . . . over ten hours left before the party. What do you want to do?"

"We could have a pillow fight," he suggested.

I rolled my eyes. "Very funny. But can you do me a favor?"

"Sure," he said. "What?"

"Kiss me," I murmured.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

When it was finally time for the party, Percy and I walked hand in hand to the beach to find the party already in full swing, even though it was barely 7:10. Torches were around the entire area of the beach, tables set off to the side for eating and resting. Alot of people had on their bathing suits - like Percy and I under our clothes - and was swimming and surfing in the ocean. Of course, I saw Travis and Connor with their hands behind their heads as Chiron searched them. How many firecrackers he pulled out of Connor's pocket I didn't know, but I'm glad he confiscated them.

When we got to the food table, loaded with a bunch of different types of chips, cakes, punch, and a chocolate fountain, we were greeted by three familiar friendly faces.

"Annabeth!" Piper called, a glass of punch in her hand. Leo and Jason stood beside her.

"Hey!" I hugged Piper. "You guys made it!"

"Yeah," Jason said, trying to talk over the loud music. "Piper and Leo are staying for the ball, but I have to go back to Camp Jupiter tomorrow."

"You're not staying for the ball?" Percy asked.

"Nah, Reyna needs all the help she can get. We're kind of in a tough spot right now, but we're handling it," Jason said, squeezing Piper's hand. Piper squeezed back and smiled at him.

"Yeah, I wanted to go back with Jason, but Piper charmspeaked me into staying for the ball," Leo grumbled, and Piper smirked at him.

"Jason!" Thalia appeared from the crowd wearing her usual death to Barbie T-shirt, Hunters jacket, jeans, and her horrible shield Aegis with Medusa's head.

Jason smiled at his sister, and Thalia hugged him. Leo held out his arms, hopeful, but Thalia ignored him, and he sighed and dropped his arms.

"Come on, let's find Grover and Juniper and the others," I said. I promised Piper that we'd see her later, grabbed Percy's hand, and led him through the crowd.

We found them on the dance floor, even Clarisse, though it looked like she was shifting weight from foot to foot in Chris's arms instead of actually dancing.

"Want to go surfing?" Percy asked in my ear.

"I don't know," I called back. "I know how, but I've never done it before. It sounds easy, all it is is balance, weight and mass-"

"I'm going to take that as a yes," Percy said quickly, making a _you're such a nerd _face at me.

We stripped to our bathing suits. Percy blushed and turned away, and I rolled my eyes but didn't say anything. But . . . oh gods, did he have a _six-pack? _I turned away too, my face hot.

Percy got a surf board.

"Um, Percy? Two people can not use one surf board," I pointed out.

"I'm a son of Poseidon, remember? If anything, surfing should be easy for me," he said.

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah? Then go out there and show me how good you are."

"Fine. But I'll enjoy seeing your expression when I surf like a pro." Percy paddled out. When a wave came he turned his board, stood up-

And fell face-first into the water.

When Percy walked back to my side I was laughing so hard I doubled over. "Nice one. _Very_ pro-like."

"Very funny. Surfing isn't my thing, anyway." Percy handed the surf board to me, and he watched as I paddled out. When a huge wave came I stood, positioned my feet, leveled my weight, and rode the wave smoothly, as though it were the easiest thing in the world.

When I returned to Percy's side all he said was, "Beginner's luck." I handed the surf board to a waiting camper.

Travis and Connor appeared and siddled up next to Percy. Travis poked Percy's arm. "Hey, Jackson. You owe us a shark ride, remember?"

Percy groaned. "Now?"

"Now!" Travis and Connor said.

Percy sighed. "Alright." He kissed me, then took Travis and Connor's arms and led them to the ocean. They kept walking until their heads dissapeared under the water.

While I waited for Percy I wanted to find Thalia. But instead someone else found me. Toby.

"Oh, hi," I said, slightly annoyed. Was was it with them popping up the first chance they get when they didn't see Percy by my side? Now I wish he was here.

"Hi," he said, flipping blond hair out of his eyes. Doing a quick scan of the crowd, looking for Thalia to come rescue me, I saw a dark head dancing with Lacy from the Aphrodite cabin. It was Steven, Rose's brother.

"So," Toby said, drawing my attention back to him, "where's your boyfriend?"

I jerked my thumb behind me. "Giving shark rides to the Stoll brothers."

Toby blinked. "Oh."

I smirked. Not too many people could say their boyfriends were on friendly terms with sharks.

Toby ran a hand through his hair. "So, how are you? With Percy?"

"You mean, are we really together," I translated coolly. "And yes, we are. We never broke up. It was a stupid rumor that hopefully everyone has forgotten about."

"Well, I hate to break this to you, Annabeth, but someone's started a new one," he said.

"_What?" _My eyes narrowed. "What's this one about?"

"Just . . . just that you and Percy are lying about being together so that no one would ask you guys to the ball," he said.

I balled my fists. I'd been in such a happy mood earlier, but now Toby was ruining it. "Thanks for telling me," I said. "But I'd rather you didn't try to talk to me every time you see my boyfriend leave my side." I turned away, but he had the nerve to grab my arm.

"We can be friends, can't we?" Toby asked. "Does Percy keep you on such a short leash that you're not allowed to have guys for friends?"

I jerked my arm back. "I have guy friends, thank you. And no, he doesn't. It's just guys like you that I try to avoid." I turned my back to him, once again searching the crowd for Thalia, or anyone to get away from Toby.

"Need some company?"

Strike that. _Almost_ anyone.

"No thank you, Brandon, I was just looking for my friends." I hurried through the crowd before Brandon could catch me. I grabbed a brownie from the food table and turned around-to find Brandon right behind me.

"Excuse me," I mumbled. I tried to get around him, but his arm shot out, blocking my path.

"I just want to talk," he said, taking a step closer.

"And maybe she doesn't want to talk to you," a voice said. Percy appeared by my side and wrapped an arm around my waist, staring hard at Brandon, his jaw clenched. Brandon glared back.

"So you're making her decisions for her, then?" Brandon spat.

"No. Annabeth doesn't need me for that. I could tell because she looked like you were annoying the Hades out of her," Percy said coldly.

"I'd watch yourself, Jackson. You don't want to cross me." Brandon got into Percy's face. He pushed me behind him and glared back at Brandon, his eyes narrowing.

"I think I do, actually."

I grabbed Percy's arm. "Percy, stop. Stop it. Come on, everyone's waiting for us." I tugged at his hand and a belt loop on his pants, pulling him away from Brandon before a fight broke out.

I kept my side pressed tightly against Percy's, rubbing his arm. I felt little vibrations in the ground.

"Percy, calm down," I said, frowning. "You're about to cause an earthquake."

When we got to all of our friends, it was obvious that they'd watched the entire moment between Percy and Brandon.

"What the heck happened?" Some simultaneously asked when I sat down, pulling Percy with me. He was still trembling with anger.

"Yeah, I could feel the vibrations," Thalia said. "I thought Percy was about to cause some major damage."

"Yeah, to Brandon's face!" Travis whooted, high-fiving Connor. "Percy would have torn that guy up if they'd fought!"

Percy gave a weak smile, his anger slowly fading. "Thanks, Travis."

Travis grinned. "No problem, man. And you know we'd have your back."

"Wow, we must have missed out on alot of drama," Piper whispered to Leo.

I grinned. "You have no idea. Just be thankful you weren't here for the pranks we've been doing."

"Okay, no more drama tonight," Katie declared. "We're going to have fun for the rest of the night, and keep Percy and Brandon as far from each other as possible. Got it?"

Everyone nodded.

But I couldn't help but catch Percy glaring over at Brandon by the food table, and Brandon was glaring viciously back.

I scooted into Percy's arms and nestled my face into his neck. "It's okay," I whispered so that only he could hear.

***Sorry this was so long. Didn't mean to make it so dramatic. Anyway, review! And btw, Piper and Leo had gone with Jason to visit the Romans, which is why they weren't at CHB. Chapter 6 coming soon.***


	6. Chapter 6: Percy and Annabeth

***Chapter 6. The ball is finally here! Hope you like. This is where the real drama begins. **

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except Rose, Steven, Toby, and Brandon.* **

*Chapter 6: Percy and Annabeth*

(Percy)

After the party last night, I'd walked Annabeth to her cabin and kissed her goodnight. I'd felt bad about causing such a scene with Brandon, even if I totally didn't like the guy. He was slimy and he obviously had a thing for my girlfriend.

An hour before the ball, the boys and I were dressing into our tuxes.

"You're not going to wear the polka-dotted bow tie?" Grover asked me.

I scoffed. "No! But I'll find Annabeth. Somehow. Do you know what she'll be wearing?"

"Nope," they all said.

"None of us knows what our dates will be wearing," Travis said, then glanced at his brother. "Well, except Connor, since he doesn't have a date."

"I do too, thank you very much," Connor scoffed. "Her name is Tracy, she's a daughter of Demeter like Katie."

"Tracy, huh?" I said, raising an eyebrow. "Sounds alot like Lacy, don't you think?"

"Shut up," Connor told me.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

As tradition, when it was time to go, all of the boys went first, loading into the vans. Once we reached the Empire State Building we huddled into the lobby. Now that there was more of us we took up the entire room.

The guy at the desk barely looked up. "How can I help you, kids? Are you all going to a prom or something?"

I rolled my eyes and leaned on the desk. "Seriously, are we going to do this every year?"

The man leaned closer and peered at my face. "Poseidon's kid?"

"Obviously."

The desk man sighed. "Go on, then. Zeus is waiting. And you know he doesn't like to be kept waiting."

We took the elevator in groups, and when everyone had rode up we marched down the long street to the giant doors of Olympus. Like last year, lights twinkled every where, in the trees, the bushes. There was a scent of vanilla and strawberries in the air, and the setting sun cast a glow, making Olympus look beautiful. I wished Annabeth would hurry and get here before she missed it. Even now, it took my breath away.

"Wow," Grover murmured, looking around. "It looks so peaceful since the war."

I knew he was talking about the war with Kronos, not Gaea. Before it had looked like a twister had run through, but now it looked as though it had never happened. Annabeth was just that amazing of an architect.

"Come on," I said. "Lets go in."

The entire room - if you could even call it a room - was decorated. Streamers hung on everything, and the floors looked polished. A long table was by the thrones, filled with snacks and drinks and a chocolate fountain, like from the party, except this one was huge.

The gods, the male gods, were waiting for us. I found my dad, and he smiled at me, the corners of his eyes crinkling.

"Welcome, demigods," Zeus said in his booming voice. "To the Olympian Ball. There will be no truth or dare, and that goes for you, Travis and Connor Stoll."

"Aw, man," Travis and Connor muttered.

"There will be no going into the gods' temples, or you will be incenerated." Zeus eyed us. "Is that clear?"

We nodded.

"Nice speech," Chris said to me. "Is it me, or does he seem to be in a worse mood than usual?"

I snickered, but when I caught my dad frowning dissaprovingly at me, I sobered, holding back my grin.

Then the goddesses arrived. I noticed almost every guy in the room staring at Aphrodite in her pale pink renaissance-styled dress, perfectly curled hair, and perfect makeup.

Grover grinned at me from under his grass green mask. "Percy, you're drooling."

I turned away and quickly wiped my face.

Then the girls arrived. I saw Travis, Chris, Grover and Nico join their dates. Connor left to find his. Rose had on a scarlet dress that showed off her bare shoulders. Her mask was the same color and had feathers. Juniper had on a lavender dress, with designs of what looked like flowers in the skirt. Her mask was pure white with gold trimming and purple and gray feathers. Clarisse was in a simple jeans and a T-shirt, but at least she had a mask on. It was silky and blood red. Of course. Katie had on a purple dress too, but darker and made of silk. Her mask was black with purple speckles and purple ringed designs over the eyes.

I quickly turned, looking for Annabeth. Where was she?

I saw a blond girl in an ice blue dress, but then her date joined her, and I turned away.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

I couldn't help running my hand over my beautiful dress as the girls loaded into the van. It was ice blue, its silky flowing material belted high above my belly button with a pale blue ribbon. Half my hair was straight, the curly half put up into a high twist with little pieces of my bangs hanging down. I'd put on a little mascara and lip gloss, and a faint touch of bronzer. My mask was the same pale blue as my dress, with beautiful patterns around the edges. I couldn't help but think I was positively glowing tonight. I also wondered what Percy would say when he saw me. I imagined his blush, then he'd smile at me and I'd then kiss him, right in front of everyone.

The desk man didn't say anything as we passed, but I did notice him staring at us. Our dresses were old styled, so they were so low cut it was embarrassing.

"Put your eyes back into your head," Thalia said to him, her arm looped through mine. Katie had my other arm, who had Juniper's, who had Rose's, who was tugging Clarisse by the sleeve of her T-shirt. The girls had almost had a field day when Clarisse wore jeans, but they at least managed to get her in a mask.

We rode up the elevator, and then hurried to meet the boys. I looked around. The sun was orange and shining on everything, making Olympus look so beautiful it took my breath away.

When we got there the gods and goddesses had already arrived. The boys were huddled together, waiting for us.

I looked around. Where were Percy and the others? With their masks, we wouldn't be able to tell. When I'd looked in my trunk I'd noticed that the polka-dotted bow tie was gone, I figured that Percy had taken it.

I turned to Thalia. "I'm going to find Percy."

"Okay," she said. "If you need me, i'll be by the food table mingling."

Smiling, I left her and wove my way through the crowd to find Percy. Colors whirled in and out of my vision, girls dresses slapping mine as they moved and danced.

A hand grabbed mine, and I turned to see a black-haired guy wearing a mask that covered his entire face behind me. It was designed so that I couldn't even see his eyes. He was wearing the polka-dotted tie.

"Hey." I smiled. "You decided to wear it after all. I thought I was going to have to hold you down."

Percy wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me close. I tried to pull his mask off, but he stopped me and shook his head.

"Trying to be mysterious, huh?" I laughed. "All right, Seaweed Brain. Are you at least going to talk to me?"

Again, he shook his head.

I sighed. "You're going to talk sooner or later. I know you will. Come on, lets dance."

I grabbed his hand and led him to the dance floor. He spun me around, his arms encircling my waist.

"Wow, when did you become such a good dancer?" I asked. He shrugged, and I groaned. "This no-talking thing is going to get on my nerves."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Percy and I were dancing when I bumped into someone.

"Oh, sorry," I said.

The boy lifted his mask. It was Steven. "It's okay . . . um . . . "

"It's me, Annabeth," I said.

He smiled. "Oh, hey."

I eyed the girl in his arms. "Well, um, I'll see you later. I don't want to inturrupt."

"Okay," he said. "Later."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

It only felt like minutes, but midnight crept up on us fast. Time really does fly when you're having fun. I saw Leo and Piper dancing, both in regular T-shirts and jeans like Clarisse with masks.

During the fireworks Percy had held me so close his hip brushed mine. I blushed. Usually Percy wasn't this affectionate. I mean, he was sweet, but it seemed like he'd hold me every chance he got, like this was our last night together.

Percy twirled me in his arms, spinning me until I was dizzy.

"Percy, the room is spinning!" I laughed, and Percy grabbed my hand. We danced a slow dance, and I buried my face into Percy's neck.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Percy)

I weaved my way around the dancing demigods, occasionally getting slapped with the hem of a girls' dress. I found four couples surrounding the food table. I quickly made my way over to them.

"Hey, guys," I said. "Have you seen Annabeth?"

They turned to me. I recognized Grover by his horns poking out of his curly brown hair. "Um, hi. Who are you?"

I ripped my mask off. "What are you talking about, Grover? It's me, Percy."

Nico took his black mask off. "Percy? You-you're not wearing the polka-dotted bow tie?"

"No way," I laughed. "There's no way Annabeth could get me to wear that thing. Where is she, anyway? I've been looking for her all night."

Grover looked at the others. They all took their masks off, confusion on their faces.

"If Percy's over here with us," Grover turned to them and asked, "then who's Annabeth been with all night?"

"My guess is someone who Annabeth thinks is Percy," Travis said.

"Woa, woa, hold on a second," I said. "I'm so confused here. What is going on?"

"Someone wore the polka-dotted bow tie and is pretending to be you," Katie said, wide-eyed. "Oh my gods, it's almost midnight! You have to find her, Percy! The midnight ball kiss!"

My heart dropped to the floor.

I had to find Annabeth. Now.

"What is she wearing?" I asked.

"An ice blue dress with a blue mask," Katie said. "Her hair is pulled up into a half ponytail."

"Thanks." Wait a second . . . ice blue?

The girl I'd seen. She'd had an ice blue dress on. A guy had joined her, and I hadn't noticed it the first time, but he had been wearing a polka-dotted bow tie. The one I was supposed to wear.

I mentally cursed myself. If I'd worn that stupid thing none of this would have happened.

I made a promise to listen to Annabeth from now on.

As I was searching, a hand grabbed my arm. I turned to find myself face-to-face with Athena.

"You need to find her," she said. "I do not like you, Perseus, but I do not like him even more. I'd rather you be with my daughter than him."

"You don't like who?" I asked, but in the blink of an eye, Athena was gone.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

When it was close to midnight, Percy tugged at my hand and gestured outside.

"Why do you want to go outside?" I asked. But Percy was already weaving his way around the dance floor. I was about to follow when someone grabbed my wrist.

"Oh . . . mom," I said. "Hi."

"Beware, my daughter. He is not who he appears to be," she told me. I was confused and about to ask her what she meant when suddenly she was gone.

"Nice talking to you too, mom," I mumbled. I weaved my way around to the doors and walked outside. The night was dark but the twinkling lights gave enough light to see. I saw Percy standing beside the fountain I'd designed for Poseidon and I started for him.

"Hey," I said. "Why did you want to come out here for? The party is inside."

He didn't respond. He stared into the fountain for the longest time.

Finally, I put my hand on his shoulder. "It's almost midnight," I whispered. Slowly, he turned around to face me.

I put my hands on either side of his face. He put his hands over mine, and together we took off his mask.

And I couldn't believe it.

Stupid, stupid, stupid, I scolded myself. I should have known. Suddenly everything made since. Why Percy was silent all night. Why he wore a mask that covered his entire face and eyes. Why he'd worn the bow tie.

Because it wasn't Percy I was staring at. It wasn't his green eyes I was looking into.

I was staring into a pair of blue eyes. Brandon's blue eyes.

I'd been with Brandon the entire night and hadn't even realized it.

I ripped off my mask. "What is wrong with you?" I yelled. "Why were you pretending to be my boyfriend?"

"Because he doesn't deserve you!" he shot back. He swallowed. "But I do. Because I love you. And I can make you way happier then he could."

"You're delusional." I crossed my arms over my chest. "I love _him." _

"Well, has he ever sent you a rose? I bet not. I bet he hasn't done one romantic thing."

Oh, gods. The rose on my bed. It wasn't from Percy after all. It was from Brandon.

"I'm going to find Percy. You'd better not follow me." I turned away, but he grabbed my arm and spun me back around.

"Annabeth!" a familiar voice called. My throat tightened. Percy.

"The midnight ball kiss will be in-five!"

Oh no. Five seconds to midnight.

"Four!"

"Annabeth!" Percy called. It sounded like he was getting closer.

"Three!"

"Maybe this'll change your mind," Brandon said, and pulled me to him. I struggled to get away, but his grip on me was too tight.

"Two! _One!"_

"No," I cried, just as Brandon crushed his lips to mine.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Percy, who was rushing torwards me, stop dead in his tracks, and my heart dropped past the concrete street all the way down to the floor of earth, thousands of feet below us.

***Ouch. Poor Percy. But don't worry. Brandon'll get what's coming to him. **

**And I never mentioned what color Brandon's hair was until now. Just Toby and Steven's. I mean, he was impersonating Percy, so he had to have black hair, right? **

**Anyway, chapter 7 coming soon! Review, tell me what you think of this drama-filled chapter.***


	7. Chapter 7: Percy

***Here's chapter 7. Percy is a bit OOC (out of character) in this chapter, since I don't think he'd really punch someone in Rick's books. **

**Disclaimer: I own nothing of Rick Riordan's.* **

*Chapter 7: Percy*

When the clock struck midnight and Brandon grabbed Annabeth and kissed her I just stopped in my tracks, frozen for a moment.

He'd stolen my girlfriend. He pretended to be me. He _kissed _her, when tonight was supposed to be mine and Annabeth's night.

Annabeth jerked away from him. Blood pounded in my ears, and my mind went completely blank. Before I knew it, I was standing in front of Annabeth and punching Brandon square in the face.

I heard Annabeth yell something, but I couldn't decipher it. Brandon staggered back holding his nose, blood gushing from between his fingers.

"Jackson!" he yelled. "You coward. You just can't face the fact that you aren't good enough for her."

"Like you are?" I growled.

Annabeth grabbed my hand. "Percy, stop. Don't get into trouble."

"Don't worry," a voice said. "He won't. But I'm afraid that Mr. Brandon here will be punished. Severely."

I turned my head, and walking torwards us was Athena, Poseidon, and . . . Aphrodite?

Aphrodite stepped forward until she was nose-to-nose with Brandon. "You almost _ruined _my favorite couple!" she growled, jabbing an angry finger at his chest. "I can assure you, mister, that you will see _no_ love in your life any time soon!"

"Aphrodite," Athena warned. Aphrodite narrowed her eyes at Brandon, her anger making her glow, but she backed off.

I heard footsteps, and pretty soon Thalia, Grover, and all of our friends joined us.

"What's going on?" Thalia and Juniper asked at the same time, breathless.

Katie turned to us. "We heard yelling, even over the crowd. What happened? Why is Brandon's nose bleeding?"

"Percy punched him," Annabeth said, wrapping her arms around my waist. I wrapped my arms around her and held her tightly.

They all turned to me in shock.

"You punched him?" Travis said.

"And we _missed _it?" Connor whined.

"Boys," Athena said. She turned to Brandon. "Chiron will be hearing of this. This can be seen as a threat to Percy and assult, and you will get a worse punishment than cleaning dishes for a month, I can assure you."

Brandon ignored her, turning his hateful eyes on me. I glared back.

"Just remember that I could keep her safer than you could. Especially because no matter what, since you're a kid of the Big Three you'll only be putting her in more danger."

And with that slap in the face, Brandon turned away from me. I moved forward, about to wring his little neck, but Annabeth saw my face and quickly wrapped her other arm around my waist, pulling me back.

"Percy, don't," Annabeth warned. "Please, he's not worth it. It's not true, he's just a jerk."

I was about to say something, blood pounding in my ears again, until I noticed that my dad was gripping Aphrodite's arm, and she looked downright murderous.

"You'd better be quiet, boy, or-" And she said words so bad in Greek that my mouth fell open. Even Athena looked astonished. Grover, Nico, Travis, Connor, and Chris slowly backed away.

Athena led Brandon away, Poseidon and Aphrodite went back inside, and I was alone with Annabeth and our friends.

Annabeth didn't let go of me, and I turned, looking her in the face.

I saw tears swell in her eyes. "Percy, I-I'm _so _sor-"

Before she could finish I kissed her. "It's my fault for not wearing that stupid bow tie in the first place," I muttered.

She sniffed sadly. "Yeah. It _is _your fault. Next time, you should listen to me, Seaweed Brain."

I agreed with her, but I wasn't about to tell her that. Instead I drew her close and hugged her tightly, burying my face into her hair.

"Percy . . . you know I didn't kiss him back, don't you?" she said into my chest.

"I know, Annabeth. I'm sorry this night didn't go as planned," I murmured. "But the ball's over now."

"Not quite." I looked up to see Thalia smirking. The others had dissapeared. "We . . . we kind of had a dance saved for you two."

Annabeth looked at her and smiled. "A dance? For us?"

"Mm-hm." Thalia gestured to the giant doors. "Now get moving so I can go to bed."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Everyone crowded around us as I took Annabeth into my arms.

"Should we put our masks back on?" I asked.

"No," she said quickly. "I"ve had enough identity theft for one night. But will you forgive me? I was so stupid, thinking that Brandon could ever be you. And he was an idiot for believing I would ever leave you. For anybody."

"Of course I forgive you." I twirled her in my arms. When she spun back we came face to face, her forehead resting against mine.

"I love you," she said quietly.

I tucked a strand of hair behind her hair. "I know. I love you too."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

It was a little before one when we got back to camp. In the van Annabeth and I kept so close together we had no room to move, as if this could make up for the fact that we'd been apart the entire night. Annabeth didn't look at me but stared out the window instead.

Our friends rode with us, and they kept silent the whole ride. They probably felt bad, and I could tell they wanted to talk about it, but they didn't, and I was glad. I didn't exactly want to talk about it, either.

Once we were back at camp everyone tiredly went to bed. I wanted to drop into bed too, but I walked Annabeth to her cabin.

"Good night," she said. She was about to walk into her cabin when I grabbed her arm.

"Annabeth?" I spun her around. She wouldn't look at me.

Her jaw clenched. "Yeah, Percy?"

"Annabeth, Brandon is a freak. He impersonated me, sure, but he just wanted you for himself. I can't-"

"Percy, stop." Tears filled her eyes. "I feel awful enough. I was fooled so easily. I feel like I don't deserve to be Athena's daughter."

"You didn't know," I said.

"I should have!" she said, glaring at me.

I tried to take her hand, but she let it slide out of mine. I sighed in frusteration. I noticed that some people were starting to stare, so I took her hand again, grasping it tightly, and pulled her to the side.

"Annabeth, I know how you feel. But it didn't work, did it? We're still together, aren't we?"

She rubbed her eyes. Now that she wasn't wearing her mask, I noticed she looked absolutely beautiful in her dress. I just thought it really sucked that I didn't get to see her in it until after the ball was over.

"Yeah. We are," she said finally.

"Okay, then."

She looked up, finally, her eyes meeting mine. She was going to say something, if I hadn't busted out laughing first.

She raised an eyebrow. "What's so funny, Seaweed Brain?"

I smothered my laugh with my hand. "Um, it's just that, when you rubbed your eyes, your mascara sort of . . . smeared."

Her hand flew to her face. "Percy!"

Biting my lip, I gently wiped the black from her eyes. "You don't even need makeup. Why are you wearing mascara, anyway?" I asked without thinking. She blushed bright red, and so did I.

Then, suddenly, she wrapped her arms around me and hugged me. I wrapped my arms around her and squeezed her waist.

"What was that for?" I asked when she pulled away.

She smiled. "Just because." She wrapped her hands around my neck and brought my mouth down to hers.

***Hey, check out the story "Crash" by ****PercyxPercabethx15****, it's sooo good. Anyway, review, tell me what you think about this chapter.***


	8. Chapter 8: Percy

***Sorry this took so long. Been busy. Also been busy writing. Another story, I mean. This is the last chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing of Rick Riordan's.* **

*Chapter 8: Percy*

Pretty much everything went back to normal. Annabeth and I just pretended like nothing had happened, and one day I saw Annabeth take the rose Brandon had given her, break it, smash it into a million pieces, and throw it in the garbage.

Also, Aphrodite was true to her word. All of the girls at camp ignored Brandon, even the ones who had drooled over him and had always said how hot he was. Now whenever he walked by, the girls would turn away in disgust. Unfortunately, everyone now knows what happened that night. Fortunately, no one brought it up or mentioned it, though I think it's just because Aphrodite had probably threatened them, too.

Anyway, it was Capture the Flag tonight, and it would be the boys against the girls. The other Hunters weren't playing - they didn't want to play against a bunch of boys - but Thalia was.

When it was time for the game, everyone headed off for the woods. Grover wasn't playing, but Nico, Chris, Travis, and Connor were by my side, tense and anxious.

"Watch out for the girls," I muttered to them under my breath. They know I didn't mean all of the girls; I meant _our_ girls, Annabeth, Katie, Clarisse and Rose.

We spread out, Connor and I guarding the flag while Nico, Travis and Chris took positions behind the bushes. At first, everything seemed normal. Too normal. Too quiet, I thought. And then-

"Percy!"

I hurried into the woods. Nico wouldn't call me unless we were under attack. Suddenly something jumped me from behind and tackled me to the ground.

"You really stink at being sneaky," a familiar voice laughed in my ear.

I grit my teeth. "Get off me, Thalia." I tried to throw her off, but her knee dug into my back, her hands gripping my wrists. Her dark hair brushed my face.

I looked around to see all of the other campers surrounding us.

"What are you doing?" I called to the boys, but they all just smirked and stood watching with the girls, not moving.

That's when I realized that this whole thing was a setup.

"Chris! Travis!" I called, but it was too late. Clarisse had Chris's hand pinned behind his back. Rose had Nico, Katie had Travis, and Piper had Connor.

Which only meant-

Annabeth took off her Yankees cap, appearing in front of the flag with a gleeful smile of victory on her face.

I squirmed, trying to push Thalia off, but her grip on me was too tight. Before I could do anything Annabeth grabbed the flag.

"We won," she said, holding the flag up, and the girls cheered. "And," she continued, moving to stand in front of me, "we won the Prank War, too. Total humiliation in front of the entire camp."

The girls celebrated their victory while the boys and I groaned. Thalia let go of me and stood up.

Then I saw a hand reach for me. I took it, and Annabeth helped me stand.

"Don't worry, Seaweed Brain," she said, smiling. "There's always next year."

After that, she wrapped her hands around my neck and kissed me, and I was pretty much okay with losing.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

*Epilogue*

(One year later)

In small groups, the boys rode up the elevators to Olympus for the ball. I tugged on the collar of my tux.

"You look fine," Grover told me, grinning.

"It's not how I look that I'm worried about," I said. This year the ball was just a tux-and-dress event, no masks, but still, I worried.

"Don't be nervous," Travis said. "Tonight's going to go by fine."

"And don't forget to kiss Annabeth at midnight," Connor added. I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

"I wont," I said, my stomach clenching in nervousness and a little in fear.

After I saw Annabeth, though, in a flowing black dress with her hair in a bun, both immediately went away. When it came time for the midnight ball kiss, and when I held Annabeth in my arms and kissed her, Brandon and all thoughts from last year's ball left my mind completely.

And if you were wondering, no, Brandon didn't have a date.

***Hoped you liked it. Don't forget to review. This's the last chapter.**

**Check out 'Crash' by PercyxPercabethx15 too, if you haven't already. It's sooo good, if I do say so myself.***


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